New York, July 20, 2023 – The United Nations on Thursday announced that the Global Coalition of Civil Society, Indigenous Peoples, Social Movements, and Local Communities for the Universal Recognition of the Human Right to a Clean, Healthy, and Sustainable Environment is the winner of the 2023 UN Human Rights Prize.
The award was made in honour of the vital role the coalition played in getting the United Nations to universally recognize the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment.
The coalition, of which Human Rights Watch is a member, is a global network of civil society, Indigenous peoples, social movements, and local communities.
The award, given every five years, will be presented in New York on December 10, 2023, on the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
This year is the first time that it has been granted to a global coalition.
The following quote can be attributed to Katharina Rall, senior environment researcher at Human Rights Watch:
“The prize celebrates the important work of environmental human rights defenders to protect their livelihoods, health, and culture against environmental destruction and to confront the climate crisis.
“The recognition of the right to a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment equips the UN system, states, and civil society to address this issue.
“Now governments need to turn this challenge into reality by developing and enforcing stronger and more coherent environmental protection laws and policies to phase out fossil fuels and curtail pollution.”
